DeCure's autonomous Neuro AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for brachial plexus neuritis — screening already-approved drugs against its 2-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleBrachial plexus neuritis maps to a 2-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for brachial plexus neuritis is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2) — PTGS2 is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet saldrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 5F1A · 2.38 Å · ligand 2-HYDROXYBENZOIC ACID (SAL). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
A 1982 study of continuous brachial plexus block for replantation surgery reported that 47 of 50 blocks (94%) provided adequate surgical analgesia, with one case of pneumothorax not requiring drainage and one case of paraesthesia that resolved within a month. This is a technique for surgical anaesthesia, not a treatment for brachial plexus neuritis itself. A 2008 clinical problem-solving article on severe brachial plexus injury from motorcycle accidents notes that surgical options have expanded but also introduced significant controversy; it does not report any drug treatment or outcome data for brachial plexus neuritis.
A 2011 case report describes brachial neuritis (Parsonage-Turner syndrome) following quadrivalent HPV vaccination in a young woman who developed median nerve distribution palsy. The report states that in 30–85% of cases an antecedent event can be found 3–14 days before pain onset, but the aetiology remains a mystery and no drug treatment is evaluated. A 2022 case report describes a 30-year-old man with haemophilia whose brachial plexus palsy was caused by an expanding chronic haematoma compressing the plexus; early surgical decompression led to partial nerve recovery at one year, but again no drug therapy is discussed.
A 2019 case report of idiopathic brachial neuritis in a child emphasises early diagnosis and proactive management to prevent muscle atrophy, noting that natural recovery may take months to years and is sometimes only partial. Across all these abstracts, no drug is tested or recommended for brachial plexus neuritis. What is missing is any randomised trial of a pharmacological intervention, any patient stratification by subtype or trigger, and any funding for such a trial.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
HAND · 1982 · 27 citations
Continuous Brachial Plexus Block for Replantation in the Upper Extremity
AbstractFor replantation surgery, continuous brachial plexus block was employed using supraclavicular or axillary approach. Of a total of fifty blocks, forty-seven (94%) gave adequate surgical analgesia throughout the operations. No serious complication appeared in this series. Pneumothorax was detected in one supraclavicular block, but no surgical drainage was required. One patient had paraesthesia in the blocked arm, but it subsided within a month. No toxic reaction was recognised in spite of high dose of anaesthetic agents. Thus continuous brachial plexus block has been ascertained to be safe, reliable, and useful for the replantation and other prolonged operations in the upper extremity.
Journal of Hand Surgery (European Volume) · 1995 · 25 citations
Low Velocity Gun Shot Wounds of the Brachial Plexus
Abstract28 patients with low velocity gunshot wounds of the brachial plexus were treated at Groote Schuur Hospital from 1980 to 1991. Delayed exploration of the brachial plexus (up to 7 months after injury) was performed in nine (30%) of the patients. The other 19 patients did not have exploration of the plexus; most of these patients showed signs of recovery within 2 to 4 weeks of injury. Injury to the subclavian or axillary artery occurred in nine (30%) of the cases. The average length of follow-up of the patients was 19 months (range 2-90 months). Of the 19 patients treated non-operatively, 15 (79%) had an excellent or good result and four (21%) a fair result. The indications for surgery were the absence of improvement within 3 months of injury or persistent pain. Surgery was indicated for significant pain in five of the nine patients; postoperatively two had complete relief of pain, two improvement in the pain and one no improvement. Of the nine surgically treated patients, three (33%) had a good result, two (22%) a fair result and four (45%) a poor result. The potential for recovery was not dependent on the severity of the injury at presentation or the presence of vascular injury but on the appearance of signs of recovery within 4 weeks of injury.
AbstractOBJECTIVE: Current management of severe brachial plexus injury has undergone recent modifications, and surgical options have expanded. METHODS: The case of a man with a severe closed brachial plexus injury resulting from a motorcycle accident is presented. The patient is found to have upper root avulsions that deprive him of function in the proximal arm. RESULTS: Pre-, intra-, and postoperative decision making is reviewed by an expert in peripheral nerve surgery. Attention is paid to both diagnosis and management. A brief review of the literature pertaining to these points follows. CONCLUSION: The recent expansion of surgical options for the management of severe brachial plexus injury has introduced significant controversy into this field.
Brachial Neuritis following Quadrivalent Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Vaccination
AbstractBrachial neuritis, originally described as neuralgic amyotrophy by Maurice Parsonage and John Turner [7] in 1948, known as “Parsonage Turner Syndrome”, is a condition that causes pain and weakness of the shoulder girdle and/or upper extremity. While brachial neuritis is a rare condition, it is the most common cause of nontraumatic brachial plexopathy [6]. This condition has been misinterpreted or misdiagnosed as rotator cuff pathology, adhesive capsulitis, tendonitis, cervical radiculopathy, compression neuropathy, tumor of the spine or brachial plexus, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, herpes zoster, and acute poliomyelitis. The etiology of this condition remains a mystery. Surgery, viral disease, infection, autoimmune mechanism, and immunization have been reported as precipitating factors of brachial neuritis. Debeer et al. reported that in 30–85% of the cases, an antecedent event can be found 3–14 days before the initial onset of pain [2].
The typical presentation of brachial neuritis is one of an otherwise healthy individual who experiences the sudden onset of intense pain in the affected upper extremity without a history of trauma. Typically, the pain is localized to the shoulder girdle and can last from a few days to a few weeks. The pain is followed shortly thereafter by weakness, which may manifest in any of the major peripheral motor nerves of the upper extremity. We present the case of a young woman with a median nerve distribution palsy that affected the muscles of both the anterior interosseous nerve (AIN) distribution and the motor branch to the thenar intrinsic muscles.
World Journal of Clinical Cases · 2022 · 0 citations · open access
Tumor-like disorder of the brachial plexus region in a patient with hemophilia: A case report
AbstractBACKGROUND: Various tumors and tumor-like disorders, originating from the neural sheath, as well as other types, may affect the brachial plexus region. Due to the infrequent presentation, brachial plexus palsy caused by spontaneous hematoma in patients with hemophilia might miss the treatment by early surgical decompression and progress to permanent nerve damage. CASE SUMMARY: The case reported here was a 30-year-old man with hemophilia, as well as both sensory and motor dysfunction of the left upper extremity. A presumptive diagnosis of brachial plexus tumor was initially made, which was subsequently confirmed to be an organized chronic hematoma rather than a neoplasm. The hemophilia-induced expanding hematoma compressing the brachial plexus was considered to be the main reason for the patient's complaints. The clinical symptoms were alleviated and the involved nerves partially recovered at a follow-up of 1 year. CONCLUSION: Early surgical intervention is crucial and it seems to be an essential precondition for recovery of nerve function in brachial plexus lesions.
Indian Journal of Child Health · 2019 · 0 citations · open access
From disabling shoulder pain to full functional gain: A hectic approach for higher yield
AbstractIdiopathic brachial neuritis also known as Parsonage-Turner syndrome is a well-defined but relatively uncommon clinical entity affecting young adults. It presents with acute-onset severe shoulder pain persisting from days to weeks along with associated weakness and subsequent atrophy of muscles of the shoulder girdle, leading to marked impairment of activities of daily living. Often, the diagnosis is late and sometimes missed in the vast ocean of its mimics. We report a case of idiopathic brachial plexus neuritis in a child, who was aggressively investigated and promptly treated very early in the course of the disease, and subsequently, muscle atrophy was prevented. This case highlights the importance of picking up the disease amid its diagnostic dilemmas and managing proactively before it evolves along its natural course which may take months to years for complete, sometimes partial recovery.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
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